He opened his eyes this morning, on the first day of fourth grade. “This is going to be GREAT!” he said. He chatted me up the rest of the morning, following me from room to room, speaking in a delighted staccato. “I wonder if there will be any new kids,” he said as he washed […]

Here in Michigan, I think Spring has finally sprung! I’m so grateful. I’m not a winter-hater, but these last few months have been positively brutal. Our kids notice it too. My eight-year-old already wants to wear shorts. Perhaps your kiddos do as well, and maybe you’ve noticed those legs looking a little on the dry […]

One of the most common questions for transracial adoptive families is regarding proper hair and skin care. It’s a topic of many forums, support groups, and websites. There is plenty we could discuss, but this article will give you some basics. Skin Let’s start from the inside out. Healthy skin and hair does not happen […]

As we close the Story Keeper series, it’s time to look to the future. If we’ve done our job well, our kids know their history and can steep it in grace, and they are empowered in the present to continue to process and learn and use their voice. Their future is before them, ripe with […]

Holiday break is over and it’s time for the second half of the school year. Even with the practice of the last several months, the morning frenzy can still leave us with a rushed and pressured start to the day. We don’t want to send our dear children off to school with the taste of […]

Some of our kids come with real nutritional deficiencies. We want what’s best for them; part of that is getting good nutrition into their bodies so they can focus in school and play with energy. That can be especially challenging now, during the holiday season, when treats abound! Here are a few ideas of how […]

As much as we love and value our children, there are days when their behavior can make us crazy. On days like that, it can be hard to discipline with grace, but it’s critical that we do so. Certainly this little post could be over simplifying, but there are some basics that can consistently help us […]

Well, as Story Keepers we’ve talked about responsibly sharing the truth of our children’s stories with them, and we’ve talked about helping them feel empowered in the present. Before we talk about the future, there’s a bit more that we need to cover in the present. It’s time to talk about how we – and […]

Connecting with your kids can be hard when life is busy, and that can be especially true during the school year. A bit of a free spirit, I’ll never forget the day the school calendar came home the first year we stopped homeschooling and put our son into a school. Suddenly someone outside of our […]

If you’ve spent any time at all with the Scriptures, you know that Proverbs is full of practical wisdom. It’s loaded with precepts that we can apply to guide our speech, our thought life, and our behavior. Proverbs guides us to what we should pursue…and what we shouldn’t. It can be a great place to […]